Glittering locales plus a decadent touch of Old Hollywood highlight this melodrama about a Greek shipping magnate who needs his estranged 24-year-old son's help in completing a business merger; he asks his second wife to fly out to England and talk sensibly to the boy, but instead a flirtation develops between stepmother and stepson. After a sequence of indescribably lusty lovemaking, the wife calls off the affair--but just as quickly changes her mind, spiraling into an obsessive love for the junior stud. The film's beautiful visuals are such a pleasure to take in, it's almost easy to overlook the movie's main flaw: that lazily-rich and chic Melina Mercouri would never turn away her powerful, handsome, adoring husband for this kid, a ne'er-do-well artist and economics school drop-out! That being said, Anthony Perkins does the stepson role justice; he keeps his mouth too tight (in a grimace) and his eyes are too busy, but Perkins has a charming ambiance here--especially in the early part of the picture--a boyish nervousness which suits the film well. As Mercouri's hairy-chested husband, Raf Vallone seems more Melina's speed, yet she turns away from him like a frigid housewife. It doesn't quite play; however, each actor handles the escalating tensions of the plot with surprising seriousness, leading to a tragic finale which really appears heartfelt. An emotional rollercoaster, "Phaedra" is gorgeously shot by Jacques Natteau, blissfully scored by Mikis Theodorakis, and soap fans should eat it up. *** from ****
